Women only playbarn

[blackcats73]

Sorry for Daily Mail Link
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2185041/Fathers-banned-play-centres-women-decree.html

AIBU to think this playbarn is unfair, especially for children whose parent is a single father? Or is it about time that there were more women only spaces?

I've posted in feminism too. I'm undecided. Would love to hear everyone's views.

Awful idea

Nice bit of Muslim bashing to be had on that article.

I think it is completely unacceptable. It is discriminatory and should not be allowed.

Bloody ridiculous to even contemplate something like that let alone institute it.

YANBU.

I think it's unfair

This is one if the few places a lone parent father can take his children on a wet weekend contact weekend

Yeah, let's exclude dads even further..

just ridiculous. that is all.

Womens only decorators? Womens only taxi services? Womens Institute?

All discriminatory IMHO

Anyway it is in a Muslim area with a Muslim clientel, I doubt there will be too many single fathers kicking round on a wet Sunday looking for something to do.

Where was the Muslim bashing??

If there has been a high demand for this facility then it would be fair enough to perhaps have one or two sessions weekly, but a complete blanket ban is ridiculous.

I don't understand why they don't run women only sessions if there's a demand for it? Why did they make the whole place women only all the time? It feels like there's something missing from this story (quell surprise being in the Daily Mail!).

I've no problem with places running women only sessions, and dad's/male carer sessions. It annoys me though when the dad's sessions take up the Saturday slots, as often happens at children's centres around here, because you know, only dad's need to do this sort of thing on a week? I guess the mum's can do it during the week while the men folk are at work

But why?

There is absolutely no muslim bashing in that article. none.

None in the article, plenty in the comments though.

Within the article.

its one of those articles designed to create discord and a "them" and "us" situation.

According to the 2001 census, Muslims make up 54 per cent of the 30,000 population of Sparkhill ? more than double the number of Christians.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission yesterday said that under the Equality Act 2010, single sex rules should be ?the exception not the norm?.
The manager of Kids Go Wild, who would not give her name, said: ?It?s a predominantly Asian community here and we?re catering for that.

'It?s not that men are an issue, ladies are more comfortable around women. Ladies have not questioned [the ban]. They?ve been asking for it.?

Good point re children's centres and Saturday morning slots for fathers, Gategipsy.

If the centre is opened under the guise of multiculturalism, then its notions are misguided. We are a Western nation with supposedly equality of opportunite for everyone.

I know I have sat with toddler DD is playbarns while older children are running about and she has been knocked over, so I can see where the idea came from.

However its a bit rubbish, its always going to hapen in play areas. Thats why we go in the day when older children are at school.

"I have sat with toddler DD is playbarns while older children are running about and she has been knocked over, so I can see where the idea came from"

That has got nothing at all to do with it. Girls over the age of 9 are not banned.

Yanbu, I'm actually stunned at the idea tbh, stunned and very saddened

I hate all the ladies only stuff (I live in Qatar). I don't find it is generally the Qatari ladies who use these facilities though, it is more the stricter people such as Indonesians and Pakistani women. I have also been in many many situations where my husband has been allowed access to a ladies only area to support me, most recently at the insurance company! When I was in hospital, he was allowed to visit me in a women only ward and they even brought a mattress so he could stay with me.
What I am getting at is that these things are fine if people want or need them but not all Muslims are segregating these days. The strictest men by a million miles I work with in Qatar are all British born Muslims who have moved out of their home country because they are worried that Islam is too lax there. One of my husband's colleagues born and bred in London and only been here a few months, locks his wife in the house while he is at work.

Ok, I live in Abu Dhabi, which is 99.9% Muslim, and they don't even have women's only kids play areas. At most they might have some evening hours that are women only (and then I can't imagine them banning a boy younger than 12 if he's with his mum).

This is very unreasonable in my opinion.

And common sense and compassion means that people who truly understand their religion would always make an exception.

It?s not that men are an issue, ladies are more comfortable around women. Ladies have not questioned [the ban]. They?ve been asking for it.?

According to the 2001 census, Muslims make up 54 per cent of the 30,000 population of Sparkhill ? more than double the number of Christians.

It is inflamatory reporting and designed to be divisive within the community. They've tempered it with a few moderate quotes

Even so, yesterday Muslims in the Sparkhill suburb of Birmingham were among those who condemned the restrictions, which were advertised on a poster outside the centre.

Ruksana Ayub, a Muslim mother-of-one, said while Muslim women may feel ?more able to relax? in a setting where they don?t ?feel they have to cover up?, she thought it ?quite shocking in this day and age that men aren?t allowed in?.

So a 5 year old wants to have a birthday party there, invites friends but only dad is free to take one - that child would have to miss out because of stupid rules?

I can't even begin to think how such a thing could be thought of as a good idea.

I can see the logic behind the ladies only taxi service as that is a safety thing as much as anything but there is no logic at all behind this

confused, I agree ladies only is definitely on the way out in the Gulf. My bosses bosses boss (CEO) takes great exception to the old school thinking that ladies are too fragile and vulnerable to cope with men around, she fights long and hard to change these perceptions and change policy.

Sparkhill, is that Birmingham? high Muslim population? Any BNP councillors yet? because shit like this just makes people antagonistic. You'll get all the "pushing us out" comments, and that is where the right gathers pace.